Connector for electric conductors.



E. H. FAILE.

CONNECTOR FOR ELECTRIC CONDUCTORS,

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I6, 1914 1 9 11. fiflfiiv Patented June 20, 1918.

Ill/l/EA/TOH BY %M A TTOR/VEY WITNESSES.

EDWARD HALL FAILE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

CONNECTOR FOB ELECTRIC CONDUCTOBS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 2@, 191 5.-

Application filed SeptemberlS, 1914. Serial No. 862,026.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD HALL FAILE, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Connectors for Electric Conductors, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to connectors commonly employed for securing the end of a multiple strand electric cable either to the end of another cable or to any suitable terminal, and relates more particularly to that type in which there is provided a socket having a portion of its internal wall of greater diameter than the cable inlet to the socket, so that the strands, after being inserted, may be wedged apart into the space of larger diameter. T-

The main essential feature of my invention involves the constructing of the socket with an extra recess or cavity, within which a body of solder or other fusible material is normally held or-stored. In using my improved connector, it is not necessaryto have any separate soldering apparatus as the solder within the socket may be melted by the application of heat to the exterior of the latter after the strands are spread apart. The solder goes with the socket as a part of the same article of manufacture, so that when the cable is inserted in the socket and the strands are spread apart, it is only necessary to apply a torch or flame to the'outer surface of the socket so as to melt the body of solder which is held within the latter. The solder, upon being melted, flows in among the strands and permanently holds the strands spread .apart so that they cannot be withdrawn from the sockets. The socket itself being offmetal, not readily melted by the flame, will quickly conduct theheat directly to the solder. It is evident that the details of construction of the connector may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention and that, therefore, various different. em-

bodiments of my invention may be designed.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated several different forms, eachof which ossesses certain advantages peculiar to itsel but all of which embody my broad invention.

In these drawings, Figures 1 to 4 inclusive show longitudinal sections through four different embodiments of my invention.

As previously pointed out, my invention involves the use of both a body of solder and a wedge in connection with a connector body or socket, the solder being incorporated. within the socket prior to the insertion of the cable within the latter and prior to the spreading of the strands by the wedge. In the specific form illustrated in Fig. 1, 1 cmploy a metal socket 10 formed integral with an attaching lug 11. The attachin lug may be of any form or shape desired, depending upon the character of the structure to which the end of the cable is to be attached. The socket has an end wall 12 at the end bearing the lug 11 and has an internal chamber 13 of truncated conical form, the opened end being opposite to the end wall 12 and the chamber being of greater diameter adjacent to said end wall than it is at the entrance opening. The opening is made of such site as to receive the group of strands of the cable after the insulation of the latter has been removed for a distance slightly less than the depth of the chamber.

In one wall, preferably the end wall 12, there is provided a second and smaller opening, through which a wedge 14, preferably of conical form, may be driven. The body portion or outer end of the wedge is of sub stantially the size of the opening in the end wall, and the taper of the wedge bears such relationship to the taper of the peripheral wall of the chamber that when the wedge is driven into place, it spreads apart the strands of the cable, and the said strands lie in engagement'with both the outer surface of the wedge and the inner surface of the socket.

Within the socket I provide a body of solder which is placed in position in any suitable manner prior to the insertion of either the cable end or the wedge. This solder is incorporated as a art of the same article of manufacture as t e socket and is of such character that it may be readily melted by the application of heat to the outer surface of the socket;

'- In Fig. 1, I have illustrated the body of solder in the form of an annular ring 15 in engagement with the inner surface of the end wall -12 and encircling the opening in the latter. The solder ring may be of any desired thickness, although in practice it is only necessary to make it of sufiicient thicle J "ness so that it will include enough solder to properly connect the wedge, socket latter and therefore strands together when the said solder is melted. By so placing the solderjthatthe ends of the strands come adj acent to or into engagement with it, and by having it encircle the wedge, it is evident that the minimum flow of solder is required to effect a permanent holding of the strands in spread condition. It will be noted that in this specific form, after the strands and wedge are inserted, there is no escape opening left for the solder, and that the latter may be melted with the socket in a vertical, horizontal or inclined position, depending upon the most convenient positioning of the cable. Even though the solder should adhere only to the wedge and the strands, it is evident that this will positively prevent the strands from being pulled out, by reason of the fact that the entrance to the chamber is of smaller diameter than the end of the cable after the latter has been expanded. If the solder adhere only to the strands and the socket, it will hold the ends of the cable in expanded position independently of the .wedge and, therefore, prevent the removal of the cable. If the solder adhere only to the socket and the wedge, it will prevent the removal of the revent the contraction of the end of the ca le; thus, even though the solder be melted to an insuflicient extent to properly connect all of the parts, yet any melting of the solder whatsoever will cause the connecting of the parts in such a way that it will be impossible for the cable to work loose. If desired, the wedge after be ing driven in to spread the strands, may be withdrawn before the solder is melted, but the strands will stay spread out and will then be permanently held by the solder after the latter is melted.

In Fig. 2, I have illustrated a slightly modified form in which the socket 10 instead of having a chamber of truncated conical form, has a chamber of substantially cylindrical form, with an inwardly extending flange or shoulder 16 opposite to the end wall 12. The opening through this flange is substantially equal to the external diameter of the group of strands, while the main body of the chamber is of greater diameter. Instead of placing a solder ring in engagement with the end wall 12, I place a solder sleeve 17 in engagement with the peripheral wall and the flange 16, and may make the inner surface of the solder ring of conical form, so that the shape of the chamber, with the solder in place, will be substantially the same shape as the chamber shown in Fig. 1.

Upon inserting the strands substantially into engagement with the end wall 12, the wedge lt may be driven into place to spread the strands out into engagement with the peripheral solder wall. By applying heat to the outside of the socket, the solder may be melted to permanently connect the strands to the peripheral wall and some of the, I

solder may, and preferably does, run through the strands into engagement with the wedge. This construction possesses the advantage that the main body of the solder is directly in engagement with the shoulder" 16, and the slightest melting of the solder will bring some of it into engagement with the strands and hold the latter while the remainder of the solder abutting against the shoulder will prevent the removal, or even the slightest loosening in case the solder does not properly adhere to said shoulder.

In Fig. 3, I have illustrated a socket 12 of course, evident that a greater or lesser number of these solder rings may be employed, or that only a single ring may be used, of somewhat the same shape as is shown in Fig. 2. The solder of the ring 15 may flow lengthwiseof the strands in the space therebetween and thus prevent the removal of the wedge, or if the wedge be withdrawn before the solder is melted and if the end wall be omitted, the solder itself may form the final end wall. The solder of the peripheral rings 19 insure the proper connection of the strands to the socket and engage with the shoulders at the sides of the several annular grooves. It is of course evident that these grooves might have their end faces beveled inwardly to more effectively retain the solder or might be beveled outwardly to present an increased surface of the solder for engagement, with the strands.

The three forms above described are adapted for use in connecting the end of a cable to a bus-bar, generator, dynamo or other apparatus or machine, but it is evident that the invention is equally applicable for use in connecting together the ends of a plurality of cables. In making such connection, the attaching lugs of two or more separate sockets, of the character shown in either Figs. 1, 2 or 3, could be directly bolted, or otherwise secured together, before or after being secured to the cable ends, or the socket might be made with separate cable receiving openings in the same integral body.

In Fig. 4 I have shown a connector, including two annular sections 20 and 21, each having a chamber of truncated conical form therein.- The chambers will receive the cables at their outer or smaller ends, while the larger or base ends may be secured together in any suitable manner. As shown, the section 20 is threaded, while the section each other.

21 presents a shoulder. collar 22 is provided with a plurality of annular grooves. 18, each containing a solder ring 19 similar to the rings shown in Fig. 3. Within the end of each cable is a wedge 23, the bases of the wedges coming opposite to each other when the parts are assembled. Instead of using two separate wedges, it isevident that a single, double-pointed wedge could be used, and be forced intothe ends of the cables to spread apart the strands at the same time that the two sections 20 and 21 are drawn together by the threaded collar- 22. It is also evident that instead of using the several annular solder rings, as shown in Fig. 4, each section might have a single ring, and the interior of the body of the socket might be cylindrical as shown in Fig. 2. One or more separate solder rings might be inserted between the abutting ends of the two cables, and correspond in position and function to the solder ring 15, shown in Fig. 1.

In the various specific embodiments illustrated, I employ a single conical wedge and so design the socket as to facilitate or permit the drivingof the wedge endwise between the'strands in order to spread them apart. It is of course evident that instead of using a single conical wedge, a plurality of smaller wedges may be employed and driven in at different points in the ends of the cable. Instead of having the wedge solid, it might be hollow so as to receive the central strand or strands only. As the main object of the wedge is to spread the strands apart into a space of greater transverse dimension than the entrance opening to the socket, it is of course evident that the spreading might be accomplished by a wedge member driven into the cable transversely thereof at the end or at a point within the socket spaced a short distance from the end. Such a construction might or might not have an end wall, but would have an opening in the side to permit the entrance of the wedge. The solder which would be incorporated in the socket as a part of the same article of manufacture, could be arranged in any of the various ways illustrated, or in any similar or equivalent way.

In all of the various forms of my invention, the wedge, after having performed its function of spreading apart the strands to a greater transverse dimension than the entrance opening to the socket, may be, removed prior to the melting of the solder so that the solder may either enter the space formed bye-the wedge and uponi andv revent the collapsing of the strands to a su 'cient extent to'permit the withdrawal" of the cable from the socket. 1

I have referred to thefusible' material course evident that the specific composition forms no portion of my present Invention and that various different metals or alloys may be employed as'the solder, and the solform a permanent wedge, or. it may bind I .gether the strandsin their spread conditlon within the socket asbeing solder, but it is of I der may even'he anon-conductor of elec tricity, particularly-where it is desired to secure.theends of cables other than electric cables. To facilitate the proper adhesion of the solder and the socket wall, the latter may, if desired, be tinned. 1

Itv is also evident that a connector might be constructed similar to Fig. 2, but with the with the solder ring 15 omitted, without in any way departing from the spirit of the invention. I v

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

*1. Anarticle of manufacture for use as a connector for multiple strand cables, IIKClIIu 1 ing a socket member having an entrance opening adapted to receive the end of the cable and having a separate opening through which a wedge may be inserted to spread apart the strands of the cable, said socket having embodied therein a mass of solder prior to the insertion of the cable or the wedge and said solder being fusible upon the application of heat to the exterior of the.

socket after the insertion of the wedge.

2. A connector for electric cables, including a socket havin a chamber therein including a portion 0 greater internal diameter than the entrance to said chamber, a mass of solder incorporated within said chamber and of greater transverse dimension than said opening, and a wedge for forcing apart the strands of said cable and serving to prevent the escape of solder from said chamber upon the melting of the solder by the application of heat to the exterior cable and of the connector.

'85- end Wall 12 omitted, or similar to Fig. 3,

pable of being melted by the application of external heat to the connector after the insertion of the cable and wedge.

4. A connector for multiple strand cables, including a socket member having a chamber with openings at opposite ends thereof, one of said openings being adapted to receive the end of a cable, a mass of solder Within said chamber and opposite to said opening and with which the end of the strands may engage, and a Wedge adapted to be inserted through the other opening endwise into the cable between the strands thereof to spread said strands apart Within the chamber, said solder being fusible upon the application of heat to the exterior of the socket after the insertion of the cable and Wedge.

5. A connector for multiple strand cables, including a socket member having a chamher and an entrance opening adaptedto receive the end of a cable, and a mass of solder within said chamber and opposite to said opening and with Which the end of the strands may engage, said mass of solder having a central aperture therethrough to receive a wedge adapted to be driven endwise into the cable to spread the strands of the latter apart within said chamber. 7

6. A connector for multiple strand electric cables includin a socket having an interior chamber and openings at opposite ends thereof, one of said openings being adapted to receive the end of the cable and being of smaller cross sectional area than a portion of said chamber and the other of said openings being adapted to receive a wedge whereby the ends of the strands may be spread apart insaid chamber to a diameter larger than said cable entrance opening, and a mass of solder incorporated Within said chamber and of greater transverse dimension than said cable entrance opening, said solder being fusible upon the application of heat to the exterior of the socket after the insertion of the cable and wedge.

Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New York this 12th day of September A. D. 1914.

EDWARD HALL FAILE.

Witnesses:

C. W. FAIRBANK, FLORENCE LEVIER. 

